On Kickstarter: A $113 and up “LumiCube” kit for the Raspberry Pi with 192 programmable LCDs, 2W speaker, mic, a Python UI, and optional sensors and 2-inch display.

A UK-based startup called Abstract Foundry has gone to Kickstarter to successfully launch a mini-PC kit for the Raspberry Pi 3 or 4. The sensor-laden kit ships with an open source Python development environment and sample apps to ease beginners into programming. Shipments are expected in September.

LumiCube from LED angle (left) and portside angle
(click images to enlarge)

At publication time, some £81 ($113) packages are still available for the base cube kit, and there is also an identical £90 $126) option. The base cube kit gives you a 10cm cubed plastic enclosure with 3x LCD panels comprising 192 lights plus a 2W speaker and microphone.

RPi 3A+

You can then add to this with one or more of the following options presented on checkout:

• Screen Add-on — £25 ($35) — 2-inch, 320 x 240 IPS screen, buttons, light/gesture sensor
• Interactive Add-on — £25 ($35) — sensors for movement (accelerometer), rotation, gravity, temperature, humidity, and air pressure
• Raspberry Pi Add-on — £55 ($77) — Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+, power supply, SD card

LumiCube detail view
(click image to enlarge)

The LumiCube’s 192 LEDs can be controlled via light, gesture, and buttons via the Screen Add-on and via motion or rotation via the Interactive Add-on. The screen is controlled directly by Python and cannot display the Raspberry Pi OS desktop.


Various LumiCube LED patterns (left) and potential Python functions and applications
(click images to enlarge)

The Python UI is available with REST end-points for integration with other programming languages. Bundled apps include a Pomodoro timer, wake-up lamp, digital lava lamp, equalizer visualization, binary clock, and Conway’s Game of Life. The LumiCube supports potential apps including voice commands, breath/blowing interactions, text-to-speech, synthesizer, and more (see chart above).

 
Further information

The LumiCube is available through April 30 on Kickstarter starting at £81 ($113) with free shipments due in September. Volume discounts are available. More information may be found on the Kickstarter page and Abstract Foundry website.